This creamy and savory Crock Pot Mexican chicken is perfect for everything from quesadillas to burritos to salads. The ultimate set it & forget it protein!
This Mexican Crock Pot chicken is creamy, flavorful, and so easy to prepare. If you’re a fan of making recipes that require easy prep like crock pot pork chops or slow cooker crack chicken, then spare just a few minutes of time and end up with the most delicious shredded chicken. If you’re into Sunday batch cooking, tack this on to your list for quick burritos, tacos, salads, and more throughout the week.
Whipping Up Crock Pot Mexican Chicken
If you can throw ingredients into a slow cooker and flip on the switch, you’ve already got this recipe figured out.
- Prepare the Onions: First, slice the onions into half rings and place them on the bottom of the Crock Pot. Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and place it on top of the onions.
- Season the Chicken: Next, pour the salsa into the Crock Pot and add the cream cheese.
- Cook the Chicken: Turn the slow cooker on high and cook the chicken for 3 hours. Give the chicken a nice stir.
- Serve the Chicken: Serve the chicken in quesadillas, enchiladas, on top of rice rice, in soups, tacos, or whatever your heart desires.
Hot Tip: Break the larger chunks of chicken up by shredding them with two forks.
Tips for Perfect Crock Pot Mexican Chicken
While the slow cooker will do most of the work for you, there’s a couple of helpful tips to make this dish your very own.
- Swap in your favorite salsa. If mango salsa isn’t your thing, feel free to swap in your favorite kind. You can’t go wrong! You can even swap in diced tomatoes in a pinch.
- Add in your very favorite spices. While this chicken is flavorful enough as-is, you can pop in your favorite spices. Cumin, cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic powder, and onion powder are all great additions. You can also add fresh lime juice for extra tang and brightness.
- Pop in your favorite ingredients. To make the chicken even more flavorful and filing, you can add in corn, black beans, or green chiles.
Hot Tip: Swap the chicken breasts for skinless chicken thighs if you prefer dark meat.
Different Ideas for Serving
The possibilities for putting this tasty shredded chicken to work are endless. Use it to make crispy chicken burritos, chicken fajita quesadillas, burrito bowls, or tostadas. You can also stuff it into corn tortillas, roll them up, and fry them in oil for easy taquitos (don’t forget to top them with avocado, fresh cilantro, and sour cream). If you want to go healthy, serve it over lettuce for a low-carb and keto-friendly taco salad.
Storing & Reheating Tips
To keep your chicken on hand for up to 5 days, store it in an airtight container in the fridge to keep it from drying out. To reheat the chicken, pop it in the microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute, or until completely warmed through.
FAQ
Is it better to cook Crock Pot Mexican chicken on low or high heat?
It’s best to cook Crock Pot Mexican chicken on high for 3 hours. This speeds up the process and doesn’t affect the integrity of the chicken whatsoever. If you want to leave it on while you’re at work or out for the day, you can take it down to low for 6-8 hours.
Can you overcook Crock Pot Mexican chicken?
Yes, you can overcook Crock Pot Mexican chicken and dry it out. To prevent this from happening, set a reminder on your phone or a traditional kitchen timer.
Can you use raw chicken for Crock Pot Mexican chicken?
You can cook Crock Pot Mexican chicken straight from raw. There’s no need to sear or brown the chicken before adding it to the Crock Pot unless you’d really prefer the added texture.
How do you prevent your Crock Pot Mexican chicken from drying out?
The are two keys to preventing your Crock Pot Mexican chicken from drying out: 1) cook it in a liquid like salsa or diced tomatoes and 2) make sure to not overcook it. Follow these two rules and you’ll be golden!
More Chicken Recipes to Try
- Crazy Easy Chicken Loaf Recipe – Healthy chicken & bread crumb loaf
- Baked Chicken Oatmeal Meatballs – Ground chicken & oatmeal meat balls
- Grilled Chicken Street Tacos – Marinated in a citrusy cilantro marinade
- Instant Pot Chicken Breast – Versatile chicken from fresh or frozen
- Baked Chicken Tenders – Crispy tenders made with easy ingredients
- Chicken Cutlets – 5-ingredient crispy chicken
Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lb chicken breasts
- 1 1/2 cups salsa or your favorite kind
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 medium onion
- 1 tsp salt adjust to taste
- 1 tsp ground black pepper adjust to taste
Instructions
- Slice the onions into half rings and place them on the bottom of the Crock Pot. Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and place it on top of the onions.
- Pour in the salsa and add the cream cheese.
- Turn the Crock Pot on high and cook the chicken for about 3 hours or until fully-cooked.
Hi Natasha! How can i make it using instant pot instead? Thank u!
Hi Vasi- I haven't tried this exact recipe in an instant pot. You can try using my instant pot chicken recipe (https://momsdish.com/instant-…) as a guide if you're pretty comfortable using your Instant Pot.
I am loving this recipe! I add a couple potatoes chopped into quarters and a cup or two of frozen corn, and just use plan salsa. This will be the fourth time I made it!
Thanks!
~Lee
oh wow, I love those ideas. I will really try your version next time. It sounds like a new dish on its own. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for sharing yet another delicious recipe! My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Do you have any more crock pot recipes?
Hey, personally I dont have the patience to wait for dishes in a crock pot. But this one can be made in a crack pot, http://momsdish.com/r553 or http://momsdish.com/r518
Okay 🙂
Will a slow cooker work for this?
Yes, use a slow cooker for this recipe 🙂
You leave the cream cheese on top without mixing everything until the end yes?
Yes, mix towards the end when chicken is almost cooked 🙂